The number of page views on the 8,659 programs related to sustainable development listed on Bachelorsportal and Mastersportal has increased from 877,722 as of January 2015 to 2,773,766 as of January 2018.

“We see that Generation Z is making headlines around the world with their advocacy for sustainability,” Carmen Neghina, data analytics consultant at Studyportals, told The PIE News.

“The beauty of the sustainable development goals is that they touch upon a myriad of disciplines”

“Therefore we were curious to see if the demand for sustainable development related programs was also on the rise and if yes, where in the world this demand is coming from.”

The research found that in certain countries the relative interest in sustainability-related programs, compared to other fields, had risen considerably in the period 2015-2018.

Growth rates were particularly impressive in Singapore (225%), Puerto Rico (143%) and Bhutan (140%), but also in Guatemala, Brunei, Myanmar, Peru, Dominican Republic, Mongolia and Ireland.

The areas that students in these countries were interested in differed slightly: Ireland and Singapore leaned more towards civil engineering programs, Oman and Costa Rica towards sustainable energy and the rest had a preference for environmental sciences.

This is a trend that universities should keep in mind, Neghina said.

“Especially with attitude changes towards the climate, economy, and activism shown by Generation Z, universities can only benefit by considering how to include sustainable development goals into their programmes and curricula,” she explained.

“The beauty of the sustainable development goals is that they touch upon a myriad of disciplines, from economics to engineering, social sciences, and therefore can be incorporated in almost every university’s academic curriculum.”